Treatment
Treatment for dental anxiety in Nottingham
Dental anxiety is common, and fear of root canal treatment in particular keeps many people away until a tooth becomes an emergency. At Endodontist Nottingham that fear is taken seriously: Angel has a particular focus on helping anxious patients feel comfortable and confident, has completed training in oral and intravenous dental sedation, and plans every appointment so that you know what to expect and remain in control.
Why root canal treatment causes so much worry
Most of the anxiety surrounding root canal treatment is inherited — from stories, from decades-old experiences and from the phrase itself — rather than earned by the procedure as it is carried out today. With effective local anaesthetic, isolation of the tooth and treatment under the operating microscope, the experience for most patients is closer to a long filling than to anything they feared. What remains difficult for anxious patients is not usually the treatment but the uncertainty: not knowing what will happen, and worrying that they will not be able to stop it.
How anxious patients are cared for
- Tell us when you book. Knowing that you are anxious allows the appointment to be planned appropriately. Many patients say the same, and it is never judged.
- A full explanation first. At the consultation the diagnosis, the proposed treatment and what each stage will feel like are explained before anything is decided. You take the plan away in writing.
- Anaesthetic confirmed before treatment. Treatment does not begin until the tooth is fully numb and you have confirmed it. If anything is felt at any point, further anaesthetic is given.
- A signal to pause. You agree a simple hand signal at the start; raise it and treatment stops until you are ready to continue.
- Appointments without time pressure. Sufficient time is scheduled so that treatment is never hurried, while most root canal treatments are still completed in a single visit.
- Continuity. You are seen by Angel Ognemirov at every appointment, so your concerns do not need to be explained twice.
Dental sedation
For some patients, a careful approach alone is not enough, and sedation is what allows treatment to go ahead. Angel has completed training in oral and intravenous dental sedation at Guy's Hospital in London and is an active member of the Society for the Advancement of Anaesthesia in Dentistry (SAAD).
Whether sedation is appropriate for you depends on your medical history, the treatment planned and your own preference, and it is therefore discussed individually at your consultation rather than offered as a standard option. If sedation is arranged, you will be given written instructions beforehand, including the requirement for a responsible adult to accompany you home.
Pain and anxiety together
Severe toothache and fear of treatment often arrive together and make each other worse. If a tooth is causing you acute pain, tell us when you book that your symptoms are urgent and that you are anxious. The first appointment focuses on relieving the pain; the remaining treatment is planned afterwards at a pace you are comfortable with. See urgent tooth pain.
A consultation commits you to nothing
If a tooth is worrying you, the first step is simply an assessment: an examination, the tests needed to establish the diagnosis and a clear explanation of the options. You decide what happens next, in your own time. Patients who were anxious very often say afterwards that treatment was far more manageable than they had expected — and that they wish they had come sooner.